Kurt Vonnegut on story structure

ANNOUNCEMENT: ISO guest bloggers to write posts for each of the story structures listed below. Please scroll to the bottom of this post for details.

Kurt Vonnegut, the acclaimed American author known for his satirical and anti-war writings, was critical of the traditional, linear approach that dominates much of literature and popular culture. He preferred a more experimental, non-linear approach that allowed for more creativity and surprise. In a lecture on the shapes of stories, Vonnegut suggested that stories could be graphed on a simple chart, with the y-axis representing the level of happiness or unhappiness experienced by the protagonist, and the x-axis representing the progression of the story over time.

Vonnegut also identified several basic story structures that he believed were common to most stories. These structures are based on the emotional journey of the protagonist and the overall shape of the plot. Following are some examples of a few of the simple shapes of story structures identified by Vonnegut:

• The Man in a Hole (example below)
• Boy Meets Girl
• From Bad to Worse
• Rise and Fall
• Man Turns into a Cockroach
• Creation Myth
• Old Testament
• New Testament
• Cinderella

The Man in a Hole

The “Man in a Hole” story structure is a simple and common plot shape that follows a basic pattern that can be applied to many different types of stories, including novels, movies, and plays. The protagonist starts off in a good place, experiences a setback or challenge, and then must work to overcome it and emerge transformed. Here’s a brief overview of the Man in a Hole structure:

1. The Beginning: The story begins with the protagonist in a good place, enjoying some level of success or happiness.
2. The Hole: Something happens to the protagonist that throws them into a difficult or challenging situation. This could be a setback, a tragedy, a mistake, or an unexpected obstacle.
3. The Journey: The protagonist must now navigate the challenges of the hole, facing obstacles and making difficult choices to overcome the difficulties they face.
4. The Climax: The climax of the story is the turning point, the moment when the protagonist must face their greatest challenge and make a critical choice. This could involve a confrontation with an enemy, a difficult decision that affects the lives of others, or a personal crisis that requires the protagonist to confront their deepest fears and flaws.
5. The Resolution: In the end, the protagonist emerges from the hole, transformed by their journey and ready to face the future with a new perspective and new tools for success.

Writing Sample

One example of a contemporary novel that uses the “Man in a Hole” story structure is The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins:

Act 1: Set-Up

• The novel introduces the protagonist Rachel, a divorced alcoholic who is struggling to cope with her life.
• Rachel takes the same train every day and becomes obsessed with watching a couple she sees from the train window, imagining their perfect life.
• When Rachel sees something shocking on one of her train rides, she becomes entangled in a mystery involving the couple she has been watching.

Act 2: Confrontation

• Rachel becomes increasingly obsessed with the mystery and starts to investigate on her own.
• As she delves deeper, she becomes more and more isolated, and her addiction worsens.
• The reader learns that Rachel’s obsession with the couple is linked to her own unresolved trauma and emotional baggage.

Act 3: Struggle

• Rachel’s situation goes from bad to worse as she becomes more isolated and her addiction spirals out of control.
• She struggles to remember what happened on the night of the mystery and starts to question her own sanity.
• The reader learns more about the complicated relationships and secrets of the characters involved in the mystery.

Act 4: Climax

• Rachel finally remembers what happened on the night of the mystery and realizes the truth about the couple’s relationship.
• The climax involves a confrontation between Rachel and the other characters involved in the mystery, and a shocking twist that upends the reader’s assumptions about the story.

Act 5: Resolution

• Rachel comes to terms with her own trauma and makes amends with the other characters involved in the mystery.
• She reflects on the events that led her to this point and considers the lessons she has learned about herself and her addiction.
• The reader is left with a sense of resolution and closure, as Rachel moves forward with her life.

The Girl on the Train follows the Man in a Hole structure by presenting the protagonist with a challenging situation in which the protagonist basically digs herself deeper and deeper into a proverbial hole, forcing her to struggle and confront her own limitations and flaws. The Man in a Hole structure is a simple and effective way to create a compelling narrative arc. It allows for a range of emotional experiences, from the highs of success and happiness to the lows of tragedy and despair, and it provides a clear framework for character development and storytelling. By following this basic structure, writers can create stories that are engaging, memorable, and emotionally resonant.

Vonnegut’s unconventional approach to story structure reflects his belief that good writing should be playful, surprising, and unconstrained by tradition. He saw storytelling as a powerful tool for exploring the complexities of the human experience, and he encouraged writers to experiment with new forms and structures in order to push the boundaries of what was possible. The story structures reviewed here are neither exhaustive nor prescriptive, but rather a way to understand the common emotional and narrative patterns that exist in storytelling. They can be used as a starting point for writers looking to create engaging, emotionally resonant stories.

Guest Bloggers Wanted

Have you published a novel (or are you writing a novel) that follows one of the above-listed story structures or one of the story structures mentioned in previous posts? If so, I’d like to invite you to write a guest post for this website based on your work! The format of the post should follow the above format and will include the following:

• Discussion of the specific story structure used
• A sample outline showing how you used the story structure in your own work
• A brief author bio with pictures of you and/or your work and links for readers to purchase your work

Contact me now if you are interested so we can discuss!